According to the media, quitting your job is a sexy thing to do these days. Over 4 million people have taken the plunge and quit their jobs over the past year. While these numbers are a bit misleading, given that most people are just going to new jobs for more pay or better flexibility, many people are quitting to take on new careers and live out their dreams.

If you happen to be one of the people who are looking to quit your job for the opportunity to do something you have always wanted to do, we say go for it! But before you pull the trigger and set off on your own, here are five steps you should have in place before you quit your job. When you have these five items checked off, quit your job and go full force into your next career and life challenges.

1.  Have One Years Salary Saved or Have Access to the Money

Want to know the quickest way to derail your job quitting plans? Quitting and not having any money saved to help you make your career transition. Or not having the ability to access the cash you need to get over the no-job hump. This cash can be in the form of early retirement savings access, taking out equity from your home, or selling some property or other assets to give you a financial cushion.

You will need money to survive when you stop working, but you will also need money to fund your new project or initiatives. Not having any money is the #1 way for you quit-your -ob journey to fail quickly and for you to be banging on your former employer’s door begging for your job back.  

2.  What do you want to Do when you quit your job? Do you have a solid plan?

Having an objective as to the next phase of your life and what you want to accomplish is an excellent strategy. Quitting for the sake of just quitting is probably not the best plan. If you quit your job and blindly float around without any explicit purpose, you will waste time and money. And this is a recipe for you squandering your chance of a life outside of traditional corporate America. So have a plan and a timeline to reach your goals.

3.  Get the Buy-In from Your Family

Do you want to cause problems that are hard to fix? Try deciding on quitting your job without the buy-in from your family, particularly a spouse. Leaving the comforts of a steady paycheck requires sacrifice and buy-in from all affected parties to succeed. If you don’t have the full support of your spouse or immediate family, it will be challenging for you to move forward with your plans with 100% conviction and momentum. Sit down with your family and tell them of your goals. And when you get their full support, you can move forward confidently.

4.  Have an initial financial goal and a 6-month deadline to reach it

You have one year’s worth of savings in place. But the money won’t last forever. So it would help if you had a solid plan and subsequent goals to make sure your plan is a success. We recommend that you have a financial target in place for 6-months after you quit your job from the outset. This financial target doesn’t have to replace your former income completely. But it needs to be an amount that shows you are making progress and will act as a benchmark for taking the next leap. 

Let’s say your goal is to begin earning at least $1500 a month as a freelance graphic designer doing projects on Upwork within 6-months of leaving your full-time job. When month #6 comes, and you have met that goal, then you can feel confident you can continue to grow your business and soon begin at the least replicating your full-time job income. However, if after 6-months you aren’t earning any money on Upwork, maybe you need to pivot and go a different direction? This mid-waypoint will give you insights on what you need to change up so that you can make the right move before your one-year savings are gone.

5.  Are You OK going back to a Full-Time or Part-Time Job if Necessary?

Sometimes our best plans don’t go as we wish. Maybe your plans haven’t made any progress financially to justify you not working full time, or at least part-time. You might have to put your ego to the side and go back to work to make money for yourself and your family. Doing this doesn’t make you a loser. It makes you responsible. 

Will you be OK doing this? Make the decision now that you will be! Say to yourself that you will quit your job and give your immediate dreams a shot. And if things don’t work out, you are willing to accept that reality and go back to your full-time job, at least for a bit, while you regroup and get yourself ready for the next opportunity. Things might not work out initially, but they just might eventually. If you are OK with this, then quitting your job is not that big of a deal. Go for it!